Tales of the Vangen: The Siege of Middengard (Book 2)

Chapter 59: Moot

A wise man makes friends with his enemies, but a wiser man makes friends with his enemies' enemies.

-Tuu Sun, an excerpt from, "The Science of War"

"I have to say, my dear Captain, that I was very surprised by your letter this morning." Rhune was all teeth today as they rode beside Libro, body swaying lazily in the saddle. "But I still appreciate the gesture." Zeek and Varis nodded their own approval as they trailed close behind, the former smiling enthusiastically, the latter eyeing him suspiciously.

"I figured you'd want a part of this since we're working together." Libro waved a hand out towards the smudgy outline of Ferus Keep's outer gate. Horse hooves echoed as they clopped over broken cobblestones, large gashes in the stonework where cannonballs had ripped through prior.

"Indeed." Rhune nodded enthusiastically. "Which begets the question. What exactly is your plan in all this? I will admit that when you told me in the letter we were dealing with the Jotuns, I thought it was going to be from a distance. This, however..." They trailed off, staring out over the distance warily. "Feels a bit close for comfort."

"Of course," Libro acquiesced. "It's not everyday you see an ancient race of giants tear your enemies apart. That would scare the living shit out of anyone. Which is why we're going to make peace with them."

"Make peace?" It was Varis who spoke up this time, dark eyes narrowing in Libro's direction. "How the feth are we going to do that?"

"Talking, for starters. Given what we know about the Jotuns, they are just as much our allies against Lord Raylein as anyone else. If we show them we mean no harm, perhaps they can be of some aid."

Rhune puzzled over that, lips pursed tight before they snapped their fingers. "That's not a bad idea. You think of that yourself?"

Libro shook his head. "I am unfortunately only half as wise as I wish to be. It was Elba who suggested it. I dare say she has enough wisdom to share between us." He reached out, resting a hand on her shoulder. The smirk that beamed from her sent his heart fluttering towards the sky. Goddess above but she could light up the world with such a smile. It was an effort just to tear his gaze away.

"Well, well. Color me impressed then." Rhune leaned back in their saddle and gave Elba a sly wink. "Not to be rude, but I'd heard rumors that you southerners were a bit backwards in some areas, at least when it came to the opinions between men and women. Glad to see they weren't true."

"It depends, I suppose. The Empire does have a strong view on certain things, but the times are changing. We even have an Empress on the throne now."

Elba's smile dropped for a second, flashing Libro an incredulous look before she shook her head and turned to face the road.

"I see." Rhune's eyes flickered in Elba's direction for the briefest of moments. Libro noted it, eyeing their compatriots behind them. Varis was an open book. He wasn't a man to be trusted at all. Zeek, however, was different, harder to read, but there was a quiet loyalty towards his leader that couldn't be mistaken.

Call it paranoia, but Libro was starting to get the feeling the Chainbreakers were watching him very closely these days. Studying his actions. Judging his intent. A mere mention of the Empress and Rhune's hackles rose by a fraction of an inch. How much did they know about the Empire already? How far had the Empress' influence spread?

"How goes the pacification of the lower city, by the way?" Libro asked, seeing if he could deduce the Chainbreaker's remaining strength. Judging whether a hard fight was waiting for him or not once Raylein fell.

A smile spread over Rhune's face. "Hard fought, I'd say. We keep finding pockets of the Warhost's resistance, but with the upper city captured we have them securely boxed in." They slapped one hand over fist. "All that's left is to flush them out."